1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a water closet bolt for use in installing a toilet and, more particularly, relates to a water closet bolt that has a notch that indicates the orientation of the long axis of a foot of the water closet bolt. The notch also provides a surface that serves as a hold-back for the user during installation and provides a break-off point to aid in the removal of an excess end portion of the bolt.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Toilets are typically mounted in place using vertical bolts that extend upwardly from a bottom surface of circular flange or collar in the toilet. These bolts, known in the trade as “water closet bolts,” typically comprise an oblong foot which serves to engage an upper surface of the collar. The bolt is configured to fit securely under one of two sets slots in the collar. The first set is arcuate and is enlarged at one end. A bolt can be inserted into one of these slots by inserting it into the enlarged end with the foot extending generally parallel to the slot. The bolt is then slid to the narrow end of the slot and rotated so that the long axis of the foot extends perpendicular to the slot and, thus, cannot be pulled upwardly through the slot. The slots of the second set are, more precisely, notches extending radially inwardly from the outer perimeter of the collar. During installation the bolt is slid radially into the notch from the outside and, if necessary, rotated so the bolt so that the long axis of the foot is perpendicular to the notch.
The subsequent mounting of the toilet involves placing a wax sealing ring over the collar and manually lowering the base of the toilet such that the bolts extend through the sealing ring and vertical apertures in the base. After the toilet is lowered over the bolts, nuts or other threaded or thread-compatible fasteners are tightened downwardly onto the upper ends of the bolts and against the base of the toilet, thus drawing the upper surface of the feet against the bottom surface of the collar and clamping the toilet in place.
One of the principal difficulties in the installation of the toilet is ensuring that the oblong feet of the bolts are oriented correctly when the nuts are tightened onto the bolts. If a bolt becomes turned during the lowering of the toilet base or tightening of the nut on the bolt, the foot can become aligned with the slot in the collar, permitting the foot to be pulled upwardly through the slot. If this happens, the toilet will not be securely fastened to the floor, which will cause the toilet to rock rather than sit securely on the floor and cause sewer gas and water to leak at the base.
Another difficulty arising during toilet installation is the lack of a non-threaded hold back surface for the bolts during the installation. During the installation process, the user must grip the bolt with a pliers or a similar tool to ensure that the bolt remains in the correct position when the nut is threaded onto the bolt. The threads of the bolt may be damaged during the installation process because the user will be required to grip the threads of the bolt during installation. As such, it may become difficult or impossible for the user to screw a nut or cap over the threads of the bolt once the threads have become damaged or to remove the nut. Thus, a bolt with damaged threads may have to be discarded and replaced with another bolt.
A further problem encountered during toilet installation is the need to remove an excess portion of the bolt once the toilet has been completely installed. Typically, the bolts used in installation are too long to properly receive commonly used plastic or ceramic caps over them. Therefore, it is necessary to break off an excess portion of the bolt in order to properly secure the cap over the remaining portion of the bolt. Oftentimes, the removal of the excess portion proves to be quite difficult and may require the use of a hacksaw or a great deal of force that may result in chipping or cracking of the porcelain. The application of too much force may also result in the tool slipping and striking the base of the toilet, thus possibly chipping the porcelain of the toilet being installed.
The so-called “Johnny Bolt” or “Johnny Style Bolt” is the most commonly used type of water closet bolt. The Johnny Style bolt typically has an oblong foot configured to fit within the arcuate slot of a flange or collar. The Johnny Style Bolt further provides a break off point located at a predetermined, industry standard location near the upper end of the bolt. The break-off point is formed from a circular groove formed in the outer periphery of the bolt. By breaking the bolt at this point after the nut is installed, a standard ceramic or plastic cap may fit over the remaining exposed portion of the bolt. A bolt of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,530,629 to Sakow, the subject matter of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide a water closet bolt for use in installing toilets that would visually indicate to the user the orientation of the long axis of the oblong foot of the bolts, provide a hold-back position to aid the user in installation and provide a break-off point to ease the removal of an excess portion of the bolt after the toilet is secured over the bolts.